Treating Neonates With Antibiotics Increases Infection Risks

The longer a mother is on antibiotic therapy, the higher the risk may be for late-onset sepsis in neonates, according to a study in Nature Medicine.

Conducting their study on mice, researchers at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia found when pregnant mice were exposed to antibiotics in their drinking water, the number and diversity of microbes in the intestine of the neonates decreased, leaving them more vulnerable and susceptible to sepsis caused by Escherichia coli K1 and Klebsiella pneumoniae.

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Researchers suggest continued studies may find certain combinations of microbes that could be used to "reconstitute" neonates' immune systems after being exposed to antibiotics, according to a Medical Xpress report on the study.